Illinois General Assembly - Bill Status for SB1688

Amends the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Requires the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to consider certain mitigating factors and evidence of rehabilitation for certain applicants of licenses, certificates, and registrations. Requires the Department, upon denial of a license, certificate, or registration, to provide the applicant certain information concerning the denial. Provides that no application for licensure or registration shall be denied by reason of a finding of lack of good moral character when the finding is based solely upon the fact that the applicant has one or more previous convictions. Provides that the Department shall not require applicants to report certain criminal history information and the Department shall not consider the information. Provides that on May 1 of each year, the Department shall prepare, publicly announce, and publish certain statistical information. Amends the Criminal Identification Act. Includes applications for license, certification, and registration that must contain specific language which states that the applicant is not obligated to disclose sealed or expunged records of conviction or arrest and entities authorized to grant professional licenses, certifications, and registrations that may not ask if an applicant has had records expunged or sealed. Provides that certain sealed or impounded felony records shall not be disseminated in connection with an application for a professional or business license, except specified health care worker licenses. Effective immediately.

Replaces everything after the enacting clause with provisions of the introduced bill with the following changes: In provisions amending the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, includes licensing Acts administered by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation in which convictions of certain enumerated offenses are a bar to licensure as an exception to the requirement that the Department consider mitigating factors and rehabilitation. Requires the Department, when examining certain factors, to determine whether a prior conviction will impair the ability of the applicant to engage in the practice for which a license, certificate, or registration is sought (rather than examining certain factors in determining whether to grant a license, certificate, or registration). Removes an affirmative obligation of the Department to demonstrate that a prior conviction would impair the ability of an applicant. Requires the Department to notify an applicant of a denial of a license or certificate or refuse to grant registration based upon a conviction or convictions, in whole or in part. Makes changes to the items that must be included in the notice. Makes changes to the information that the Department shall not require applicants to report. Changes various references of "new and renewal license, certificate, or registration" to "new license, certificate, or registration". Makes changes to information the Department must report. Restores a fee to be charged by the Department, but reduces the fee from $200 to $175. Makes changes to when the Department may consider an application to make disciplinary records confidential. In provisions amending the Criminal Identification Act, provides that applications for certification, registration, or licensure (rather than employment, certification, registration, or licensure) shall (rather than must) contain certain language. Provides that if it not reasonably feasible to include the language in the application, the entity authorized to grant a license, certification, or registration shall publish on its website instructions specifying that applicants are not obligated to disclose sealed or expunged records of a conviction or arrest. Removes changes to provisions concerning retention and release of sealed records. Removes the immediate effective date.

Replaces everything after the enacting clause. Amends the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Requires the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to consider certain mitigating factors and evidence of rehabilitation for certain applicants of licenses, certificates, and registrations. Requires the Department, when examining certain factors, to determine whether a prior conviction will impair the ability of the applicant to engage in the practice for which a license, certificate, or registration is sought. Provides that no application for licensure or registration shall be denied by reason of a finding of lack of good moral character when the finding is based solely upon the fact that the applicant has one or more previous convictions. Provides that the Department shall not require applicants to report certain criminal history information and the Department shall not consider the information. Provides that on May 1 of each year, the Department shall prepare, publicly announce, and publish certain statistical information. Amends the Criminal Identification Act. Provides that the entity authorized to grant a license, certificate, or registration shall include in an application specific language stating that the applicant is not obligated to disclose sealed or expunged records of a conviction or arrest. If the inclusion of specific language on an application is not practical, the entity shall publish specific instructions on its website concerning disclosing sealed or expunged records of a conviction or arrest. Amends the Illinois Insurance Code. Provides that the Director of Insurance must find that a resident insurance producer or public adjuster applicant has not committed certain acts or has been sufficiently rehabilitated to approve the application. Requires the Department to consider certain mitigating factors and evidence of rehabilitation for license applicants. Provides for licensure of nonresident licensees if certain standards are met. Requires the Department, upon denial of a license, to provide the applicant certain information concerning the denial. Amends various professional licensing Acts with the following changes: Provides that the licensing agency shall not require applicants to report certain criminal history information and the licensing agency shall not consider the information. Makes other changes. Requires the licensing agency to consider certain mitigating factors and evidence of rehabilitation for license applicants. Requires the licensing agency, upon denial of a license, to provide the applicant certain information concerning the denial. Provides that on May 1 of each year, the licensing agency shall prepare, publicly announce, and publish certain statistical information. Makes other changes. Effective January 1, 2018.

In provisions amending the Department of Professional Regulation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois concerning applicants with criminal convictions, includes if, due to the applicant's criminal conviction history, the applicant would be explicitly prohibited by federal rules or regulations from working in the position for which a license is sought among the mitigating factors the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation shall consider to determine whether a prior conviction will impair the ability of the applicant to engage in the practice for which a license, certificate, or registration is sought.

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